Contribution of the Sub‐Surface to Electrocatalytic Activity in Atomically Precise La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 Heterostructures
- 22 October 2021
- Vol. 17 (49), 2103632
- https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.202103632
Abstract
Electrocatalytic reactions are known to take place at the catalyst/electrolyte interface. Whereas recent studies of size-dependent activity in nanoparticles and thickness-dependent activity of thin films imply that the sub-surface layers of a catalyst can contribute to the catalytic activity as well, most of these studies consider actual modification of the surfaces. In this study, the role of catalytically active sub-surface layers was investigated by employing atomic-scale thickness control of the La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (LSMO) films and heterostructures, without altering the catalyst/electrolyte interface. The activity toward the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) shows a non-monotonic thickness dependence in the LSMO films and a continuous screening effect in LSMO/SrRuO3 heterostructures. The observation leads to the definition of an “electrochemically-relevant depth” on the order of 10 unit cells. This study on the electrocatalytic activity of epitaxial heterostructures provides new insight in designing efficient electrocatalytic nanomaterials and core-shell architectures.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF‐2021R1A2C2011340, NRF‐2019R1A2C1005267, NRF‐2020R1A2C1006207)
- National Science Foundation (NNCI‐2025489)
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